TEA AND CINEMA EVENINGS

Three Seasons (Vietnamese title: Ba Mùa) is a 1999 American film shot in Vietnam about the past, present, and future of Ho Chi Minh City in the early days of Doi Moi. It is a poetic film that tries to paint a picture of the urban culture undergoing westernization. The movie takes place in Ho Chi Minh City, formerly Saigon. As the characters try to come to terms with the invasion of capitalism, neon signs, grand 5-star hotels, and Coca-Cola signs, their paths begin to merge.

This was the first American film to be made in Vietnam after Bill Clinton lifted the embargo. The filmmakers were followed by Vietnamese inspectors throughout filming.

The Vertical Ray of the Sun is the third feature film by Vietnamese-born French director Trần Anh Hùng. The film centres on three sisters who live in present-day Hanoi: Suong is the eldest, then Khanh in the middle, and Lien is the youngest. The film takes place over the course of one month, starting on the anniversary of their mother's death and ending on the anniversary of their father's. Tran was inspired to make the film after visiting Hanoi during a break in the filming of Cyclo during the Christmas holidays in 1994.

"Departures is a 2008 Japanese drama film directed by Yōjirō Takita and starring Masahiro Motoki, Ryōko Hirosue, and Tsutomu Yamazaki. The film follows a young man who returns to his hometown after a failed career as a cellist and stumbles across work as a nōkanshi—a traditional Japanese ritual mortician. He is subjected to prejudice from those around him, including from his wife, because of strong social taboos against people who deal with death. Eventually he repairs these interpersonal connections through the beauty and dignity of his work."

"The Way Home is a 2002 film written and directed by Lee Jeong-hyang. It tells the heart-warming story about a grandmother and her city-born grandson who comes to live with her in a rural village. The film, which reminds the younger generation of the unconditional love and care that old people selflessly give, won South Korea's equivalent of the Oscars for best picture and screenplay. It was the second-highest grossing homegrown film in South Korea in 2002."

"Himalaya: Caravan is a 1999 Nepali film directed by Éric Valli and was funded through based in France corporations. It was the first Nepalese film to be nominated in the Best Foreign Film category at the 72nd Academy Awards. The film is a narrative on both the traditions and the impermanent nature of human struggle to retain and express power in the face of the gods. "The gods' triumph" is the call that echoes at the end of the film and expresses the balancing of karmic destinies. The extreme environment of the Himalayas is magnificently contrasted to the delicacy of humanity and the beauty of Tibetan culture.

Postmen in the Mountains is a 1999 Chinese film directed by Huo Jianqi. It is based on the short story of the same name by Peng Jianming. Postmen in the Mountains tells the story of an old man (Teng Rujun) who for years served as the postman for rural mountain communities. Retiring, he hands over his job to his son (Liu Ye), but accompanies him on the first tour. Together, they deliver mail on a 230 li (about 115 km) long walking route, into the rural heart of China and in the process the son learns from the mails' recipients more about the father he hardly knew.

The Scent of Green Papaya is a 1993 Vietnamese-language film produced in France by Lazennec Production, directed by Vietnamese-French director Tran Anh Hung, and starring Tran Nu Yên-Khê, Man San Lu, and Thi Loc Truong. The film won the Caméra d'Or prize at the 1993 Cannes Film Festival, a César Award for Best Debut at the French annual film award ceremony, and was nominated for the 1993 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. It was Tran Anh Hung's first feature film and stars his wife, Tran Nu Yên-Khê. It is also his first collaboration with Vietnamese composer Tôn-Thât Tiêt. In 1994 this movie was nominated for Oscar as a Best Foreign Language Film.

"Death of a Tea Master (Japanese: 千利休 本覺坊遺文, Sen no Rikyu: Honkakubô ibun also known as Sen no Rikyū: Honkakubo's Student Writings) is a 1989 Japanese biographical drama film directed by Kei Kumai. It is based on real life events of Sen no Rikyū, particularly the events surrounding his ritual suicide. It was entered into the main competition at the 46th Venice International Film Festival, in which it won the Silver Lion."